Season 3: The Aftermath
by OCTV1
Summary: This fanfic takes place immediately after the Season 2 finale. It deals with the intense emotional struggle that these characters must face after the fall out at Trey's apartment.
1. Default Chapter

This fanfic takes place after the season two finale.

Seth and Summer ran into the small house. They both instantly froze. They looked down at Marissa. Her face was in complete shock. Her eyes were wide open, and her jaw was slightly dropped. Ryan was lying on his side. His facial expressions showed he was in tremendous pain. Summer looked across the room at Trey. "Oh my god," she gasped. His motionless body was lying in a slowly growing puddle of blood.

Seth didn't know what to say. He was in completely shock. What had happened? He had never seen anything like this. Summer wasn't sure whether Trey was alive, or whether Ryan and Marissa were injured. She pulled out her cell phone and dialed 911.

Seven minutes later, the ambulance and police arrived. Not one word was spoken during those seven minutes. Ryan had passed out. Marissa was still clenching onto the gun. She didn't know why. She didn't even know what had just happened. Her mind was completely frozen.

Two policemen rushed into the room with a stretcher. Trey was lifted onto the stretcher, and a blanket was pulled over his face. He was rolled out of the house. Moments later three more policemen ran inside with another stretcher. Two of them lifted an unconscious Ryan onto the stretcher, and he was taken out. The third policeman looked down at Marissa and saw the gun. He tried to talk to her, but she didn't respond. He forced her up, and put her in handcuffs. Marissa was walked outside and placed into a police car, and driven away.

Seth and Summer stood outside in horror as they watched Marissa become smaller and smaller. Seth noticed his dad's car pull up near the police cars. Sandy quickly got out of the car and ran to Seth and Summer. "What happened," he asked. He was very concerned.

"We don't know," Seth told his dad. "When we walked in, Marissa was in the corner with a gun, Trey was lying in a puddle of blood, and Ryan was lying on his side. Trey and Ryan were taken out on stretchers."

Sandy was completely shocked and worried. "Oh my god. What about Marissa?" he asked.

"She was taken away in handcuffs," Summer told him. She was trying to hold in her tears. She was confused. What had happened? What did Marissa do to get her taken away in handcuffs? She had never been so worried in her life.

Sandy slowly escorted Seth and Summer to his car. They were all shaken up. Seth and Summer got into the backseats, and Sandy got into the driver's seat. They made their way to the hospital.

Jess was driving down the road in her step dad's beamer. She glanced to the passenger's seat and saw all the cash sitting there. She smiled. She couldn't wait to get away, to Vegas. With Trey. She turned down the road that Trey's house was, and immediately saw tons of flashing lights, and cop cars. She drove up and parked her car. She stepped out and saw the crime scene tape around Trey's place.

Jess opened the front door to her car. She reached her hand inside. She grabbed the cash, and threw it under the seat. She stepped back out of the car and closed the door. Jess cautiously walked towards the crime scene. What the hell was going on? She walked up to a person who was standing near the crime scene. "What happened?" she asked.

The man looked down at her. "I'm not sure. I was just walking by when I saw two young men being brought out on stretchers, and a young girl being arrested."

Jess' jaw dropped. Trey had to be one of the young men. His place was now a crime scene, and he was nowhere to be found. She had to find out what had happened. She ran back to her car and got inside. She made her way to the hospital.

Sandy, Summer and Seth all sat in the waiting room. They had only been waiting a few minutes, but it seemed like hours. They all waited impatiently to see Ryan. How were they going to tell him that his only brother was dead? The bullet had went right through Trey's lung, and caused severe internal bleeding.

Finally, their wait was over. Ryan slowly walked into the waiting room. He was fine. He was still in pain from the fight, but nothing serious. He walked with his head low. He had just seen Trey's body. He wanted to say good bye. His face was expressionless. He couldn't cry. He couldn't smile. He couldn't speak. All he could do was slowly walk towards them. Summer ran to him first and hugged him. He was a little taken aback by the hug, but he then understood she was just being a good friend.

Seth patted his back. "You okay?" Ryan didn't answer. "Sorry," Seth said, feeling stupid.

Sandy walked up to Ryan. He put his arm on Ryan's shoulder. "I'm so sorry. But I'm glad you're okay." Ryan didn't have any response. Sandy picked his jacket from the seat and put it on. "I have to go down to the station," he said as he walked out.

Marissa sat in the office. She stared at the wall. She didn't move, except for the minor shaking. She was in complete shock. She didn't just kill someone, did she? She didn't even know. Was Trey alive? Was Ryan okay? Was she going to be okay? How could she live with this? The first tear of the night slowly fell down her face.

A police officer opened the door, and guided Sandy into the office. The officer then left the room. Sandy sat down opposite Marissa. He could see the terror in her eyes. She looked at him, and everything suddenly hit her. She began to cry. Sandy was very patient with her, and comforting. He put his hand on her shoulder, and tried to calm her down. She finally looked up at Sandy. "Is he, alive?" she nervously asked.

Sandy looked down at the table and then back up at her. "No, I'm so sorry," he calmly told her.

She looked down. Her face was trembling. She looked back up. "And Ryan? Is he okay?" she asked.

"He's fine," Sandy assured her. "Just a little shaken up."

Marissa felt relieved.

Sandy looked at her. "Marissa, I know this has got to be hard, but I need to know what happened. If I'm going to represent you, I need to know the full story."

Marissa stared at the wall and started to cry. She had a hard time pulling herself together, but she eventually managed. "I walked in. Trey was strangling Ryan." She paused.

Sandy could see the pain in her eyes. This was very hard for her to say. "What happened next?" he asked.

"I tried to stop him. But he swung at him," she slowly said as she stuttered. "He ripped the phone out of the wall. Lifted Ryan's head." She looked at Sandy's face. "He was gonna kill him, I swear."

Sandy understood the rest of the story. Marissa put her head down onto the table and started to bawl.


	2. Chapter 2

Jess sped into the parking lot of the hospital. She quickly parked her car, and got out. Jess ran through the doors to the emergency room. She looked around, and spotted Seth and Summer. She knew they would know what was going on. She walked angrily towards them. "Where is he?"

Seth stood up. He knew she must've been talking about Trey. She wouldn't have cared about Ryan. Seth didn't know how to answer her. "Jess," he said. But then he paused.

"What is it?" she asked him, unsure of what his answer would be.

"He was shot," Seth managed to stutter out.

Jess froze. Was he serious, or was this some kind of joke? "What?" she firmly asked.

"I'm sorry," Seth said as he looked at Summer. He looked back at Jess. "He didn't make it."

Jess felt like she had been punched in the face. She slowly lowered herself and sat down. "Oh my god," she said in a frozen tone. "You can't be serious?" But from the look on his face, she could tell he was serious. And then she did some thinking. Her gun must've done the shooting. The police could trace that back to her. She panicked inside her head, trying not to show any signs to Seth or Summer. She stood up. "I have to go," she said as she left the hospital.

Jess ran out the hospital doors, and straight to her car. She got in quickly and reached under the seat. Jess pulled out the money and just stared at it. She was panicking. What should she do? Should she just take the money and go to Vegas anyways, like planned. She had to. She had no other choice. She backed out of the parking lot, and sped out of Newport.

Sandy and Marissa walked out of the office to see her parents. Jimmy and Julie and been waiting for a while. They were so anxious to see their daughter. Jimmy spotted her first and ran to her. He grabbed her and held her. The tears started flowing down her cheeks. Julie then hugged her too. All three of them just stood there, holding each other. Jimmy and Julie were both crying, but their tears were nothing compared to Marissa's. She needed them so badly right now.

Jimmy stared at his daughter's water face. He wiped away the tears with his hands. "It's going to be okay," he assured her. "I promise."

Julie put her arm around Marissa. "You did what you had to do. We know it's hard, but you saved someone's life."

Marissa looked up at her mom. "I also ended someone's life," she said.

Julie was speechless. She didn't know how to respond. She just hugged Marissa and said, "Things will get better."

Marissa continued to sob. Her fragile body was shaking vigorously. Her parents continued to comfort her, but it didn't work. She would never be the same.

Ryan sat alone on the beach. It was late and cold, but he didn't care. He stared out at the vast ocean. He watched the waves crash against the shore. He couldn't take his eyes off the waves. They just continuously hit the sand. It was like a fight. Like his fight with Trey. He was the sand, and Trey was the crashing waves. The only difference was Trey stopped and fell. The waves didn't stop. He couldn't get the image of his mind. Trey hanging over him, blood slowly seeping through his shirt. It was an image that would haunt him forever. He started to cry. There was only one person he wanted to see right then, but that person was also the one person he didn't think he could see right then. He needed Marissa, but he knew things would be awkward. She saved his life, and he loved her, but she still did kill his brother. He wasn't mad about it. He was so grateful that she did it, but he still didn't know what it would like facing her for the first time.

Sandy approached Jimmy, Julie and Marissa. They all slowly turned to face him. "I just spoke with the officers. Under the circumstances, I think I you can get off on self defense. The only difficulty is the reason why Ryan went there in the first place. They could reason that you had a motive."

Julie and Jimmy both looked at Sandy, with confused faces. "What would her motive be?"

Sandy looked at Marissa and realized that she hadn't told them. Marissa nodded at Sandy, and he left them alone for a minute.

"What is it kiddo?" Jimmy asked her nervously. How could she have a motive?

Marissa stared at both her parents, while she continued to cry. She slowly revealed the marks on her chest. Julie's jaw dropped. "Did he do that to you?"

Marissa grabbed her parents and cried into their bodies. They didn't want to ask any questions that would upset her any further. Jimmy and Julie could both figure out the rest by themselves.

Ryan was still lying on the beach. He had no idea what time it was. He didn't care. He stared up at the stars. Trey was up there now. Or was he? Could he be down below? Ryan shook the thought out of his head. Trey had his problems, but he had a heart. He just couldn't get his brain working properly. He deserved punishment, but not this.

Seth and Summer slowly walked down the beach together. Neither of them was speaking. Just thinking. They never expected a night like this one to ever happen. They had thought dramatic things had happened before, but nothing touched this. This was something that no one should ever have to live through. Especially not kids. They were too young.

Summer suddenly stopped, and stared at the sand. She began to cry. Seth put his arm around her. Summer looked up at Seth with her watery eyes. "This is my fault."

"What?" Seth asked, trying to calm her down. "There is no way this is your fault."

"She told me a secret," Summer cried. "I told you something that was none of my business. If it wasn't for me, this never would've happened."

"I'm the one who told Ryan. I'm more at fault than you," Seth said as he stared at the ocean. He thought for a minute. "We can't do this. We can't blame ourselves, or anyone. It'll only make things harder."

The two continued to make their way down the beach, Summer resting her head on Seth's shoulder as they walked. And then they spotted a figure in the distance. It was Ryan. Summer looked up at Seth. "You go see him. I should probably go. He needs you," Summer told him. Seth agreed, and kissed her forehead goodbye. She quietly walked towards the pier.

Ryan looked up while lying down and saw Seth walking towards him. Seth quietly sat down beside him. He kept silent. He wanted to wait for Ryan to make the first words, to make sure he was ready. Seth stared at the ocean, Ryan at the stars. After a few minutes Ryan finally managed to say, "Hi."

Seth looked at him. "I'm sorry. I really don't know what to say," Seth said. He had never been in a situation like this.

"There's not much to say," Ryan whispered. "He's gone."

"I know," Seth said. He couldn't even imagine how Ryan must have felt right then. "It will be okay. It may not seem like it now, but it will be." Seth was trying his best, but he wasn't good at times like these.

"See that's the thing," Ryan said. "It won't be. You don't understand. This was my fault. I shouldn't have even gone over there in the first place."

Seth had no response. He didn't want to sugar coat a situation like that. He didn't want to try and make Ryan take his mind off the situation. All he wanted to do was support him. He put his hand on Ryan's shoulder in a brotherly way.

Ryan looked up at Seth. "Have you talked to Marissa yet?"

"Not yet. My dad's with her," Seth informed him.

Ryan felt horrible. He hated the position he put her in. He lay back down to the sand. He turned his head towards Seth. "I think I just need to be alone for a little bit."

Seth completely understood. He got up from the sand, and slowly made his way off the beach.

Marissa walked into her room. It was her first time being home since the night before. She had been in the station all night long. She dropped herself onto her bed. Marissa lay back and stared at the ceiling. She hadn't slept at all. She hadn't even bothered trying. Every single time she closed her eyes she saw the same thing. Trey's bleeding face staring at her, right after she pulled the trigger. She cried every time she pictured it. It was a look of pain and anger. She felt sick to her stomach every time she imagined the pain he must've been in. The pain caused by her. If only she had shot him in the foot. Why did she have to shoot him in the lungs? Why? No, don't think about things that way. She did what she had to do. She didn't have time to think about it. All she knew was she had to stop him from killing Ryan. That's what he was going to do. Right when the phone was ripped out of the wall, she knew what it was going to be used for. Marissa turned her face into the pillow and started to sob. She was crying so hard that it made her shake, but she was interrupted by a knock on the door.

The door slowly creaked up and revealed Summer standing in the doorway. "Coop?" Summer nervously whispered.

Marissa turned her face to the door, and then rested her head on the pillow.

Summer didn't know what to do. Should she just leave and let Marissa be alone? Or should she be there to comfort her best friend. "I can leave if you need to be by yourself," Summer told her friend.

Marissa wiped the water off her face. "No, its okay," she said as she sat up.

Summer slowly made her way to the bed and sat down beside Marissa. The site of Marissa's tears made Summer begin to cry. "I'm so sorry. I really don't know what to say."

Marissa tried to hold her in tears and Summer could see how hard she was trying. "Don't hold them in. It'll just make you cry even harder. I'm here for you."

Marissa collapsed onto Summer's lap in uncontrollable tears. Summer patted Marissa's hair and started to cry. The two best friends sat on the bed, crying hard, comforting each other.

Jimmy and Julie sat across from each other at the dining room table. Both of them were staring at different places. Julie's head was resting on the table. "I can't even begin to imagine how she's feeling," Julie said. "I literally can't."

Jimmy slowly nodded his head. "It's just completely unfair. They're all just kids. They're way too young to deal with an emotional tragedy like this."

Julie looked up at Jimmy. "What is this going to do to her?" she asked nervously.

"I have no idea," he said. "I honestly don't know what's going to happen."

Julie sighed. "How is she going to live with this? She saved a life, but still. I don't know if I could live with killing someone, and I'm a full grown woman. She's only a teenager. And she's never been emotionally strong."

Jimmy stared at Julie. "We're going to have to support her 100 percent. She needs us. But we also have to give her all the space she needs."

Julie stared down at the table. "Poor Ryan. He's also going to be going through a really tough time. He and Marissa will need each other. I hope this won't pull them apart. That will destroy her even more," Julie said, concerned.

"He's a smart kid," Jimmy assured Julie. "This will make them stronger."

Sandy stood in the kitchen, alone. He looked around the room. He pictured Trey standing there holding the paper, looking for a job. He erased the image from his mind. Sandy looked over at the phone. Should he call her? How could he not? It would make things even harder for her, but this was something she needed to know. If he didn't call, all hell would break lose when she got home and found out. This was something she had to know. Sandy picked up the phone and dialed a number.

"Suriak Centre, how may I help you?" a woman answered.

"Hi, this is Sandy Cohen calling. I need to speak with my wife, Kirsten Cohen."

"One moment please," the lady said into the phone. She typed Kirsten Cohen into the computer to find her room number. She read Kirsten's information. "Oh, I'm sorry Mr. Cohen. Mrs. Cohen won't be able to use the phone for another 48 hours. She's still in detox."

Sandy sighed. "I'm afraid I need to speak with her. It's an emergency."

"I'm sorry Mr. Cohen," the lady began, but Sandy interrupted her.

"There's been a death," he said into the phone.

The woman froze. "Okay Mr. Cohen, I'll forward you through to her."

Sandy waited a couple minutes. How was he going to tell her? What was she going to do? His thoughts were interrupted.

"Sandy?" Kirsten said into the phone. She was excited to talk to him, but wondered why she was allowed to break the 72 hour rule.

Sandy was so happy to hear her voice. He missed her, and needed her so badly. "Kirsten, hi," he nervously said into the phone.

She started to get teary. "I miss you. It's so lonely in here."

"I miss you too," Sandy said into the phone.

"It's so good to hear your voice," she smiled.

Sandy hesitated. "Kirsten, something has happened."

Her smile turned into a worried look. "What is it?" she cautiously asked.

"Trey was passed away," Sandy slowly said into the phone as his voice saddened.

"What?" she shrieked. Did she just hear what she thought she heard? No, of course not. How could it be?

"There was an accident last night," Sandy told her through the phone.

Kirsten was completely frozen. She now knew it was true. "What kind of accident?" Her voice was getting shaky.

"I won't go into detail right now. Trey and Ryan got into a very serious fight, and Marissa was forced to use a gun to save Ryan's life. Unfortunately, it ended Trey's life." He didn't know any other way of telling her.

Kirsten's jaw dropped. She started to shake. She dropped the phone onto the ground. Was this true? Yes, it had to be. She began to cry. She couldn't stay in there at a time like this. Her family needed her. She had to be with her. She couldn't stay alone after this tragedy. She slowly got up and emptied her drawers. Kirsten stuffed all of her stuff into her bag. She had to get out of there.

Kirsten grabbed her bag and walked out of her room. She had to get out of there. She needed to see her family. She bolted down the hall, but was stopped by a locked door at the end. She began banging furiously on the door. They had to let her go. They just had to. No one could keep her in there after such a tragedy just took place at home. A nurse down the hall heard the ruckus and walked towards Kirsten.

"Mrs. Cohen, it's time to go back in your room," she said.

"Get away from me," Kirsten told her furiously. She turned back to the door and continuously tried to break it down, but she knew she had no hope. The nurse tried to take her arm, but Kirsten shoved her away. Two more orderlies had seen what was going on and ran down the hall. They had to hold Kirsten and force her back to her room, as the tears poured out of her eyes. Why were they doing this? It wasn't fair. Why wouldn't they let her be with her family?

Ryan slowly made his way up the Cohen's driveway. He had been at the beach all night. He couldn't stop thinking about everything. He just didn't understand why things had to end the way they did. Why did he go over there? Ryan opened the front door to the Cohen's house, and made his way inside. He walked through the living room and saw Seth and Sandy standing there. No one spoke.

Sandy walked over to Ryan and hugged him. "You're a good kid," he whispered.

Ryan weakly smiled. "Thanks." Ryan started to walk through to kitchen towards the door, but then stopped. He slowly turned around and faced Sandy. "Could you do me a favour?" he asked.

"Of course." Sandy was glad to hear Ryan talking.

Ryan looked down at the ground. "Could you, uh, find my mom?" he asked.

Sandy nodded to Ryan. "Of course I can."

"Thanks," Ryan said as he walked out the door and over to the pool house. He walked in and jumped immediately at the sight of Trey sitting on the bed. No, it wasn't true. It was his imagination. He put his hands up to his face and wiped his eyes.

Summer and Marissa sat on Marissa's bed. Each of them deep in their own thoughts. Marissa still couldn't get that one image out of her head. She didn't think she would ever be able to erase Trey's face staring back at her. She wanted to keep a fonder memory, but that's the only image she could see.

Summer kept running the same thing through her head. How could I of broken her promise? Summer felt terrible. She didn't want to bring it up, but she couldn't get it out of her mind. Marissa had told her something confidential, and she had to open her big mouth and tell Seth, knowing that he would tell Ryan. She felt so stupid. Summer looked over at Marissa. Marissa was staring at the wall. She wasn't moving. Barely even blinking. What was she thinking? Summer wished she could make things better, but she couldn't. She couldn't even imagine the thoughts Marissa must be thinking. "Coop?" she finally spoke up.

Marissa turned her head and looked at Summer.

"Do you think maybe we should go downstairs for something to eat or drink?" Summer asked concerned. She assumed that Marissa hadn't eaten yet.

Marissa showed a very weak smile. "Okay," she responded shakily.

The two girls got off the bed and made their way downstairs. Julie greeted them in the kitchen. She walked up to Marissa and gave her a hug. Marissa wasn't used to hugs from her mother, but she appreciated them at this time.

Julie turned to Summer. "Hi, Summer," she said in a nice voice with a hug.

"I'll be back, I have to go to the washroom," Marissa said as she left the room.

Summer and Julie both stood in the middle of the kitchen. Julie looked over at Summer. "You going okay?" she asked sincerely.

"About as well as I could be at a time like this," Summer told her.

"Summer," Julie said. "Marissa is going to need you more than anyone right now. You're her best friend."

"I know. It's so hard to see her like this," Summer said as she wiped a tear off her cheek.

"Yeah," Julie said quietly. "She's a strong person. But she's going to need all of you to get through this. This must be so hard for all of you."

Marissa opened the door to her room. She walked into the room quietly, and then towards her dresser. She opened the top drawer and removed a shirt. Marissa slowly unraveled the shirt to reveal a small metal flask. She stared deeply at the object in her hands. No. Put it away, she thought to herself. But it looked so appealing. Alcohol always takes away the pain when she's depressed. And she had never been more depressed than now. She wanted it so badly. But then she did something she wasn't expecting. Marissa wrapped the flask back up in the shirt, and put it away. She had to be strong.

Kirsten sat on her bed. Her hands were covering her face. The tears seeped through the small spaces between her fingers. She tightly held her family's Chrismukkah picture from last year against her chest. She didn't understand why they were forcing her to stay in there. She needed her family and her family needed her. She couldn't stand being so alone at a time like this one. The phone in her room began to ring. Kirsten tilted her head towards the phone and stared. She didn't want to move. After the fourth ring she managed to move herself to answer it. "Hello?"

"Kirsten, hi," Sandy quietly said into the phone. All he heard was her crying.

"Hi," she whispered. "I need out," she told her husband.

"Kirsten, I know you're upset, but you have to get better," Sandy told her.

Kirsten looked at the ground in anger. "I'm fine" she growled.

"You're not fine," Sandy insisted.

Kirsten cried even harder. Why was he doing this? Of all people, she expected him to understand. "I can get better later. We can work through this at home. I need to be with my family!"

Sandy stood frozen in the Cohen's kitchen. It was painful to hear her cry. He hated it, but he knew he was going the right thing. "I'll come visit you today, I promise."

Kirsten hesitated. Sandy wasn't the person she wanted to see. "Could you send Ryan when he's ready?" she asked him as she managed to control her tears.

Sandy nodded as her answered. "I promise."

Marissa was lying alone on her bed. She stared at her dresser. Her eyes were frozen. She wanted a drink so badly. She ran through all of her memories of her times with Trey through her head. And then she jumped from terror as she remembered the incident on the beach. The incident that started it all. If only they hadn't drunken that night. If they hadn't, Trey would still be alive, Ryan would still be happy, and she wouldn't be a murderer. Marissa cried hard into her pillow. She finally got up and stood in front of the dresser. She pulled out the same shirt and unraveled it. She needed it. She needed something. She couldn't stand the thoughts any more. Marissa needed something to wash out the thoughts she was running through her mind. She slowly opened the metal flask. She put the drink up to her lips and took a sip, but then spat it out against the mirror. Marissa quickly walked to the bathroom and locked the door. She emptied the contents of the flask into the sink, and then turned on the taps. She had to be strong. Alcohol would only end up putting her in a permanent depression. There was something she had to do, and it didn't involve drinking. Marissa walked into her room and closed the door. She nervously walked towards the phone and picked it up. She shook as she dialed the numbers. Should she really call him? Yes. They needed to speak to each other.

"Hello?" Seth answered on the other line.

"Hi," Marissa shakily said.

Seth immediately froze. He didn't know how to act. "You doing okay?" he asked her.

"Well, you know," she answered awkwardly.

"Yea," Seth responded.

"Is he there?" Marissa slowly asked Seth.

"One second," Seth said. He walked out of the kitchen and down to the pool house. Seth knocked on the door and Ryan answered. Seth covered the phone and whispered, "Its Marissa."

Ryan hesitated. He didn't know if he was ready to talk to her. But then he spontaneously grabbed the phone from Seth. Seth closed the door and walked away, to give Ryan some privacy.

"Hello?" Ryan nervously said into the phone.

Marissa froze on the other end. She was wiping away her tears. "Hi," she said through her crying.

Ryan could immediately tell she was a mess. It was completely silent and awkward. No one knew what to say.

"I love you," Marissa whispered.

Ryan was taken aback, but a small smile crossed his face. "I love you too," he said as he sniffled.

Marissa completely lost it and broke down. "I'm so sorry," she sobbed into the phone.

"This wasn't your fault. You saved me," he assured her.

"Can we do this in person?" Marissa nervously asked. "This doesn't feel right over the phone."

Ryan paused, but then agreed. "Okay, come here."

Marissa said goodbye and hung up the phone. She started to cry even harder. She wanted to see him so badly, but it was going to be so hard. It was going to be very emotional for her.

Ryan hung up the phone and stared at the ground. His thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door. Ryan looked up and saw a face he hadn't seen in a long time.

Dawn Atwood was staring back at him. A single tear was rolling down her face. She raised her hand and gave him a wave. "Hi Ry."

"Mom," Ryan said. He was shocked to see her. He hadn't seen her since he first moved in with the Cohen's.

Dawn ran to him and grabbed him. The mother and son hugged for what seemed like forever. Dawn cried into Ryan's shoulder. "It's going to be okay," she kept repeating to him. "I've missed you so much."

"I've missed you too," Ryan told his mother as he tried to hold in his emotions.

Dawn sat down on Ryan's bed, and he sat right beside her. "I found a way to get here as soon as I spoke with Sandy. Are you doing okay?"

Ryan looked at his mom. "I don't know. I guess so. I'm not really sure. Are you?"

Dawn gave a weak smile, and then started to cry. "I just wish I could've seen him once more. I haven't even spoken to him since I left you here. I tried to visit him in prison, but he, well, he hates me."

Ryan had a hard time listening to his mom. He put his arm around her for comfort. "He doesn't hate you. He was just confused."

Dawn smiled at Ryan. "Thanks." Neither of them spoke. They both just stared at the ground. "Have you spoken to the girl that, well, you know," Dawn nervously asked.

Marissa, Ryan thought to himself. He had completely forgotten that she was coming over. There was a knock on the pool house door and he looked up and could see Marissa's legs at the bottom of the curtains. He turned to his mom. "That's her," he carefully said, unsure of how his mother would react.

Dawn stood up. "It's okay. You two talk. I'll go get my stuff settled in the guest room."

Dawn walked to the door and opened it. Marissa was in complete shock when she saw Dawn. Oh my god. Ryan's mother. What was she doing here? What was she going to say? Marissa killed her son. Marissa started to shake.

Dawn could see the terror in the poor girl's eyes. She walked to Marissa and gave her a hug. Marissa was startled and taken aback by the hug. She started to quietly cry as Dawn hugged her. Dawn let go and then walked back Marissa and left the pool house.

Marissa and Ryan both stared at each other. Neither of them knew what to say. Marissa finally made the first move and walked towards him and hugged Ryan. She started to bawl in his arms. "I'm so sorry," she cried. "I'm so sorry," she continually told him.

Ryan rubbed her back and started to get teary as well. "It's okay. If it weren't for you, I'd be gone."

Marissa wiped her tears away and stared at him. "I love you so much."

Ryan sat down on the bed and lay down. She lay down beside him. "I love you too," he told her. "I'm so sorry that you had to do that."

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you myself," Marissa sobbed into his arms. "This is my fault."

"No it's not," he insisted. Ryan sat up and stared at her. "We have to work together to get through this."


	3. Chapter 3

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	4. Chapter 4

Two large black limos slowly made their way down the road, towards the cemetery. Trey's funeral was being held today. The ceremony was going to be very small. Upon arriving, both limos came to a stop at the side of the road.

Marissa and Ryan both stepped out of the first limo, followed by Seth and Summer.

Out of the second limo came Sandy, Julie and Jimmy, followed by Dawn Atwood.

It was a beautiful and sunny day, but the blackness of everything made the sunshine seem nonexistent. Every slowly made their way into the cemetery to where the private ceremony would be held. Trey had already been buried. Everyone was now gathering with a minister to pay their last respects.

A familiar yellow car pulled up behind the two limos. Theresa pulled the keys out of the ignition and got out of the car. She lifted her long black skirt, and made her way to join everyone. First she walked up to Ryan and gave him a long hug. "I'm so sorry," she whispered into his ear.

Marissa watched as the two hugged and looked to the ground. This was all her fault, she thought. The tears that were being cried were caused by her. This funeral was because she shot and killed someone. She knew she had to, but it still all felt so weird.

Theresa pulled away from Ryan and turned to Marissa. The two girls stared at each other, when finally Theresa approached Marissa and gave her a very friendly hug. Neither girl spoke a word. They just hugged.

Theresa then turned and saw Dawn. Dawn began to walk towards her. "Theresa," she said with her arms wide open.

"I'm so sorry, Mrs. Atwood," she cried into her arms. She didn't know what else to say. She was hugging a woman who had lost her child. It was a very saddening situation.

After everyone had become silent and gathered around Trey's grave, the minister stepped forward. "We are all gathered here today to pay our last respects to Trey Atwood."

The minister continued to speak, but Marissa was finding it hard to accept his words. Everything hit her like a bullet. All these people had gathered out of sadness because of Trey's death. The death that she had caused. She had murdered someone, and she was now at his funeral. It wasn't right, she thought. She wanted to pay her respects, but it felt wrong being here now. But there was nothing she could do now. She continued to watch, as tears slowly began to drip out of her eyes. She didn't even bother wiping them away.

Ryan stared down at the tombstone. Trey Atwood, 1984-2005. Everything suddenly seemed so real. His big brother was lying motionless in the ground. He was dead. Trey wasn't coming back. Ryan put his hand on his face, trying to hide his emotions. He couldn't stop thinking about the fight that had caused this. The fight he went over to start.

Dawn closed her eyes and listened to the words being spoken. She couldn't control herself. After taking a few steps away from everyone, she let the tears come pouring out. Her first born son was now completely gone. Forever. She was trying because of that, but she was also crying because of how bad things had gotten before his death. Attempted rape? Never would she have thought that one of her boys would be a rapist. She shook the thoughts out of her head. He wasn't a rapist, she said to himself. He was a rough kid, who made some awful decisions. She blamed herself for most of those awful decisions. If only she had been a good mother. If Trey had grown up living with the Cohen's, he would have been a completely differently person.

After a moment of silence, everyone slowly made their way back to the limos.

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Kirsten sat near the corner of the common room, reading. Patients were doing all sorts of things. Some were watching TV, a few playing cards, some others reading. Kirsten wasn't very social here. She usually kept to herself.

One woman had noticed Kirsten and approached her. "You alright?" the lady asked.

Kirsten looked up at the woman. She was fairly tall, brunette, brown eyes. Very pretty. Kirsten thought she was probably a few years younger than her. "I'm fine," she smiled.

"You don't seem fine," the lady responded after taking a seat. "I've noticed you around a lot, seen you had meetings, but I've never seen you socializing."

Kirsten stared at the woman, wondering why she's here. She seemed so normal. "I'm quiet, I guess."

The lady could tell that Kirsten was very sad. "My name's Amy," she said while putting her hand forward."

"Kirsten," she said while shaking Amy's hand.

"Look, I know this place isn't exactly a blast, but it's only going to be worse if you distance yourself from everyone else."

Kirsten was a little stunned at how direct the woman was. "I'm not distancing myself. It's just a hard place to be. A hard time to be away from my family."

Amy nodded, understanding. "It is for me too."

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Sandy sat down at the kitchen table with Seth and Summer. He was getting them both prepared for the trial. "Alright, the trial is tomorrow, and you both should be prepared."

Summer nodded.

"Are they definitely going to call us up?" Seth asked his dad.

"Yes," Sandy nodded. "You both arrived at scene before anyone else did. You'll definitely be asked questions."

"What kind of questions?" Summer curiously asked.

Sandy turned his direction to Summer. "Well, you and Marissa have been best friends for a long time. They may ask you questions about her past. If she has a violent history, if she's the jealous type, that kind of thing. They'll want to learn as much about her as possible."

He turned and looked back at Seth. "They're going to ask you what you both saw when you arrived at the scene. Seth, they may ask you about things you noticed about Ryan and Trey's relationship while he was staying here."

Sandy now focused on both of them equally. "Whatever you do, be honest. There's no point in lying when Marissa is innocent, and if you get caught in a lie, that's the worst thing that could happen."


	5. Chapter 5

Marissa sat nervously in the courtroom. She was sitting beside Sandy, who was getting his papers organized. She looked around the large room. Seth, Summer and Ryan were sitting closely behind her. Jimmy and Julie were both sitting nearby. Marissa saw Dawn sitting beside Ryan. Theresa beside Dawn. Everyone had gathered to watch the trial. She looked around some more and saw the jury. These people terrified her. These were the people who would be deciding her future. The rest of her life was in their hands, and she prayed to god that they would believe her story.

Ryan watched as Marissa's trembling body looked around the room. He felt so bad. He wished he could be where she was instead. It wasn't fair. She didn't deserve this. All she did was save his life, and now she was in court, being tried for murder. He still couldn't believe how things had ended up like this. He and Trey had problems, but never did he imagine that one of them would end up dead. It was pathetic, he thought. Two brothers couldn't even solve their problems without death. It really was sad.

After finally finishing with his papers, Sandy took a minute to breath. He looked over at Marissa and saw the genuine fear and sadness in her eyes. Poor girl, he thought. The world is an ugly place. A sweet girl may be facing jail time for saving her boyfriend's life. It just wasn't right, Sandy thought to himself. He turned around and gave Seth, Summer and Ryan an assuring smile, and then faced Marissa again. "It's going to be okay."

She turned to him, starting to get teary. "How do you know?"

"Because you're innocent. You have nothing to worry about. Just tell the truth," he explained.

Marissa nodded and wiped her eyes. "Thank you so much for doing this for me."

Sandy smiled. "You're a good kid Marissa. This is what I do. I get good kids out of unfair trouble."

The sweet conversation was quickly ended by the bang of the gavel. "Order in the court," the judge yelled. She looked through her papers. "We have Marissa Cooper up for the murder of Trey Atwood. Sandy Cohen is defending Marissa Cooper."

Marissa looked at Sandy immediately. That one sentence made everything so real. She started shaking and breathing heavily.

Sandy stood up. "Your honor, my client is not guilty. The act was a form of defense."

"Sit down Mr. Cohen," the judge harshly told him. "Marissa Cooper, please rise to the stand."

Marissa nervously got up and made her way towards the stand. She took a sit. A man approached her with a bible, and she recited the traditional speech, agreeing to tell the whole truth.

The judge turned to Sandy. "You may begin."

Sandy got up and walked towards Marissa. "Marissa Cooper, first explain what you saw in Trey's apartment that forced you to shoot him."

Marissa closed her eyes and jumped at the site she saw. Trey strangling Ryan. Killing him. "I ran into the room, and Ryan was lying on his back with Trey on top of him. Trey's hands were around Ryan's neck. He was strangling him."

"And what did you do when you saw this?" Sandy questioned.

"I screamed," Marissa began. "I shouted at Trey. I ran to him and started hitting him and pulling. I couldn't get him off. Then he swung at me and pushed me off," she said with her eyes closed. She was running the grisly scene in her head. She remembered it all too well.

Sandy nodded. "After you were shoved, what did you do?"

Marissa was shaking harder than ever. "I looked to the ground and saw the gun beside me," she explained. "When I looked back up, I saw Trey rip the phone out of the wall. And that's when I knew what he was going to do," she said. But then she paused. Marissa was having trouble speaking. She started to cry.

"It's okay," Sandy assured her. "You have to tell me what you did when Trey grabbed the phone."

Marissa started to speak through her tears. "I bent down and grabbed the gun off the floor. I looked back at Trey, and he had lifted Ryan's head up." Marissa paused and started to sob. She looked straight at the judge while crying her eyes out. "He was gonna kill him. I had to do it. I had to pull the trigger."

The judge acknowledged Marissa's tears and nodded. "Now I have a question Ms. Cooper. I want you to explain what caused all of this in the first place."

Marissa froze. She didn't want to repeat that night on the beach, but knew she had to.

Sandy looked at her. "Marissa, what happened between you and Trey?" he asked.

Marissa pulled herself together and began. "When Ryan was away in Miami, I had been hanging out with Trey. Trying to keep him company. I helped him find a job. That sort of thing. One night we decided to go out to get some fresh air so we went to the beach. While we were there," she paused. Her eyes closed and she watched Trey attack her. "Trey tried to kiss me. I said no, but he insisted that I was interesting because I was helping him. I told him I was helping because he was Ryan's brother, but he wouldn't believe me. He attacked me," she cried.

The judge shook her head. "You're going to have to go into more detail than that on the attack."

Marissa wiped away her tears and continued. "He grabbed me and kissed me, and pushed me onto the ground, him falling on top of me. I screamed for him to get off, but he wouldn't. I grabbed a piece of driftwood beside me and bashed him in the head. I tried to get away but her grabbed me and scratched my chest. Then I managed to push him away and get up. I ran away as fast as I could."

Ryan sat there stunned. He had never heard the full story before. He knew the gist of it, but never did he think it went on that long. Ryan looked down to the ground in emotional pain.

Sandy could tell that Marissa couldn't take much more. "Thank you Marissa. That's enough for now."

She slowly got up and made her way back to her seat. Summer, sitting directly behind Marissa, put her hand over on Marissa's shoulder.

Sandy looked at the judge, and then at Ryan. "Ryan, please come to the stand," Sandy said.

Ryan made his way to the stand, and he too recited the truth agreement.

The judge looked down at Sandy. "I would like to ask some questions to Mr. Atwood."

Sandy nodded and sat down.

"Mr. Atwood," she said. "What was your reaction when you first heard about the attempted rape?"

Ryan looked at Marissa, who was looking at the ground. Then he turned to the judge. "I was angrier than I've ever been. Any problems me and Trey have had all rushed to my head. I couldn't control my anger."

"What did you do?"

Ryan looked down to the ground. "I drove to Trey's house. He pulled a gun on me, so I started to back off. But I couldn't control it. I was too angry. I charged him. He hurt someone that I love."

Marissa looked up at Ryan and their eyes met. She started to cry.

"Tell me about the fight," the judge asked.

"Well," Ryan started. "I was winning at first. I nailed him in the face a bunch of times. Then he flipped me into the coffee table and started strangling me. It's blurry from there."

The judge nodded, understanding. "That's enough. You may be seated."

Ryan got up and returned to his seat.

The judge shuffled through her papers and then looked back up. "Summer Roberts, please come to the stand."

Summer nervously got up, Seth's hand sliding out of hers. She walked forward and took a seat.

Sandy stood up and walked towards Summer. "How did you first find out about Trey's attack on Marissa?" Sandy asked.

"Well," Summer took a breath. "I had noticed the scratch on Marissa's chest, and she had told me she had fallen. I didn't really believe her, but I was too wrapped up in my own life, and didn't make anything of it. Then I noticed extremely awkward tension between Marissa and Trey, and started to link the two together. I asked her what happened, and at first she acted like it was nothing. But then she finally broke down and told me."

"What was your reaction?" Sandy asked.

"I was shocked!" Summer explained. "And scared. I felt so bad for her. I didn't know what to do. I wasn't sure if Ryan should know, so I decided to tell Seth instead."

"What did he say?"

"He was just as scared as me. He was also worried that Trey might to it again to someone," Summer told Sandy. "We decided that Ryan had to know."

Sandy nodded. "What did you see when you ran into Trey's place?" Sandy asked her.

Summer closed her eyes and pictured the image. "Trey was lying motionless on the floor. Marissa was across the room, in shock. She was trembling. And Ryan was beside Marissa, looking out of it."

"Did you call the police immediately?"

"Yes, right away," she told him. "I didn't know who what had happened. I just saw Trey motionless, Ryan looking in pain. I didn't know who was injured or who was not."

"Thank you Summer," Sandy said as he motioned for her to go back to her seat.

The judge interrupted before Summer got up. "One more question. You're her best friend, so you would know. Does Ms. Cooper have a history of violence or temper?"

Summer shook her head. "Not at all."

"She did try to kill herself, didn't she?" the judge viciously asked.

Sandy stepped in. "That has nothing to do with this trial. I would appreciate it if we stuck to the case."

"She also almost caused someone else to shoot themselves." The judge looked out at Marissa, who looked horrified. "Not your first situation involving a gun, is it?" She looked back at Summer. "Take a seat."

The judge watched Summer return to her seat, and then spoke up. "Seth Cohen. Please rise."

Seth was expecting to be next, so he readily got up and walked up to the stand.

The judge looked down at Seth. "Before you tell me about that night, I want to know about the relationship between Ryan and Trey Atwood. They both lived in your house at the same time for a short while. Did they get along?"

"Well, they had minor problems like any siblings," Seth explained. "They got into arguments, but they both clearly loved each other."

The judge nodded at Sandy, allowing him to ask questions.

Sandy stepped forward. "What was Ryan's reaction when you told him about the incident?"

"He looked like he was in pain. He sat down and told me that he couldn't ignore this," Seth explained. "He said he had to settle things with Trey."

The judge told Seth he could sit down, and then she looked towards the jury. They all left the room for quite a while.

The entire courtroom was filled with tension. Everyone was scared. Marissa was crying. Seth and Summer were both silent, staring at the ground. Ryan had his eyes closed, thinking about everything. Theresa had her arm around Dawn, comforting her. Sandy was nervous. Jimmy and Julie were holding each other, worried about their daughter's future.

After what seemed like forever, the jury finally re-entered the room. Everyone, except Ryan who was still looking down, sat up immediately and faced the jury.

One jury member stood up. "We, the jury have carefully reviewed this case. We understand what the defendant is saying," he paused, "but we just don't believe her."

Julie's jaw dropped. Marissa immediately turned and faced Sandy, petrified. Seth and Summer looked at each other, unsure of what that meant. Ryan now immediately looked up at the jury.

"Spoiled rich girl gets her hands on a gun. Points it towards the man who tried to rape her. Revenge looks sweet. We do however believe that Ms. Cooper was defending Ryan Atwood, but we don't believe her story. The jury finds the defendant guilty. We sentence you to five years."

Marissa screamed. She couldn't help it. She fell to the ground in uncontrollable tears. Ryan jumped over the wooden barrier and held her tight. Summer and Seth were in shock. Julie was absolutely outraged. This wasn't fair. Dawn was completely shocked and stunned. Theresa was frozen. Jimmy started to cry for his daughter.

Marissa Cooper was going to jail.


End file.
